Waiting
by PhoenixDowner
Summary: Despite the distance, Sora and Kairi search for ways to feel closer to one another. Set post-KH3.


Waiting

Sora might be gone, but that wasn't about to stop Kairi from writing to him often.

It was like talking to him, in a way. When she put her thoughts to paper, she could almost hear him responding. Knew what he might say. Could picture his face as he crossed his arms and pursued his lips the way he always did when he was focusing hard on something.

She had a bag full of letters addressed to him now. They were all carefully dated in order of his disappearance. Not death. There was a difference. Death meant he would never come home. Disappearance meant there was still hope.

And for that hope all his friends had searched for him day in and day out. She had, too. Right now was a brief respite, a few days to spend at home before searching the next place with Riku.

Early one morning, she paddled out to the Play Island alone. Carrying her bag to the paopu tree, she sat down and opened her notebook, then turned to a fresh sheet and pulled out a pen.

_Dear Sora,_

_We still haven't found you yet._

_I wish I knew why. I wish I knew where you are right now. All I can think of is how lonely you must be, without all of your friends. Without us._

_But knowing you, you've probably already made new friends already. I hope you have._

_I'll be home for a few days as Riku and I rest up. We haven't had any luck so far, but we're not about to give up hope. Riku has been a godsend through all this. Without him, Sora, I don't know what I would've done. He's been my rock. I know you would've asked him to take care of me if you had the chance, so I think it would make you glad to know that he's more than fulfilled his word._

_Other than your loss, which weighs pretty heavily on everyone, I think you would be glad to see how well everyone's doing. And it's all thanks to you. You gave so much so that we could all be together._

Hot tears splashed onto the notebook at the fear that he might be gone forever. She took the pen again, eyes blurring as she continued to write. She spoke the words aloud as she jotted them down, wishing with all her might that he could hear them.

_I'm so proud of you. You know that, right? But I can't help but wonder. Is this what you really wanted?_

_The pages were covered in splotches, the ink smearing everywhere, but still she continued to write. There were things she needed to say._

_Oh, enough of being brave. I'm going to be selfish. I miss you terribly. Please come home soon. And by that I mean… come back to me. Maybe it's a little presumptuous of me to say, but you don't have to be on Destiny Islands to be home. So long as we're together, you're home._

_There's no smile your heart can't reach. I've written that in so many letters now, but it's true. I look forward to the day I can see that smile again._

_Yours truly,_

_Kairi_

She gently tore the piece of paper out of the notebook, tucked it in the envelope she'd brought, and carefully wrote the day.

She put the envelope in her pocket and looked to the sky. The sun was rising, leaving streaks of purple and pink and orange in its wake. There wasn't a cloud in the sky. The light breeze tickled her cheek. It was going to be a beautiful day.

* * *

Sora pulled his jacket tighter around him. The nights here got cold, especially when it was raining. But he had just the thing he wanted to show Kairi.

Taking a deep breath, he hit the red record button.

"Hey, Kairi, it's me!"

He cringed. What a dumb thing to say. Of course she would know it was him.

"A-Anyway, I'm still in Shibuya. What I want to show you today is… this statue!"

He moved the camera to show Kairi what he was talking about: a statue of a Shiba Inu dog.

"Pretty cute, huh? Legend has it that there was a dog named Hachiko who used to come meet his owner at this station every day. Well, his owner died one day while at work, but Hachiko didn't stop coming here. He waited for him to come home every day for over nine years until he died, too. I know, I know, the story's kinda sad, but… I figured you'd like it."

He gave the statue a few quick pets. "This statue was made in memory of Hachiko, and it's a pretty popular meeting place. That's why I had to come so late at night to find a time when it wasn't surrounded by a bunch of people. I wanted you to be able to see Hachiko clearly while I told you the story."

He sighed, really feeling it this time. "Sorry for making you wait again, Kairi. I wish I could meet you here." Pulling her lucky charm out to show her, he managed a quick smile. "I still have it, see? There for a while, I lost my memories again, but I still had this. This is what helped me remember. You're always with me, Kairi, even when we're apart."

He tucked the charm back into his pocket. "Still, I'm looking forward to when we can really be together again every day, like I promised."

The video was getting kinda long, and he wanted to make sure there was enough space for tomorrow's. "Anyway, I gotta go for now, but I can't wait to show you what else I've found here. Talk to you later, Kairi."

He pressed the red record button again, and the video saved. Going into his list of contacts, he found Kairi's number and hit send.

The videos never actually sent, of course. Otherwise Kairi would've responded by now, he knew she would've. For whatever reason, the service didn't seem to work here. Probably because he was, you know, dead.

Maybe, though, if he made it back to the Realm of Light… she'd finally get them.

Until then, he'd keep making them. Talking to her like this wasn't the same as talking to her in person, but… it helped him get through each day, having this to look forward to. Hoping that maybe, someday, she'd get all his videos and see that he'd done everything he could to get back to her. That she hadn't waited in vain.

Casting one last look at Hachiko, he pet the dog's paw for luck. Miracles didn't happen all that often, but he prayed that one might.

Because if anyone could make a miracle happen, it was Kairi.

* * *

A/N: Written for SoKai Week Day 3 - Letters OR Gummiphone Shenanigans - why not both?


End file.
